The Hanwha Eagles are vying to regain first place in a match against the first-place LG Twins.
Hanwha has 40 wins and 27 losses (winning percentage .597), trailing the first-place LG, who has 40 wins, 26 losses, and 1 tie (winning percentage .606) by half a game. Hanwha will face LG on the 14th at Hanwha Life Baseball Park in Daejeon. A victory on that day would allow them to reclaim first place.
The game on the previous day, the 13th, was canceled due to rain. Hwang Jun-seo, who was scheduled to be the starting pitcher on the 13th, has been postponed, and Ponce will take the mound as scheduled after 5 days of rest on the 14th against LG.
Kim Kyung-moon, the manager, noted before the game on the 14th, “We need to consult the players. If Ponce takes an extra day off, I would consider pushing him back a day. The pitchers who just came in (Hwang Jun-seo, Cho Dong-uk) are all doing their roles, so Ponce is going to pitch today because he has the memory of pitching on a 5-day rotation.”
Ponce has pitched in 14 games this season, achieving 9 wins with no losses and an earned run average of 2.20, recording 119 strikeouts. He leads in wins, earned run average, and strikeouts. On the 8th against KIA in Gwangju, he struggled after a four-day rest, allowing 5 runs on 5 hits (including 2 home runs) over 5 innings.
Kim Kyung-moon stated, “At that time, I had 4 days of rest before I went out. No matter how well someone pitches, they are still human. While he has 9 wins and no losses, the fatigue level varies between pitching after 4 days of rest and 5 days of rest.” He noted that there are no other issues.
Plans will be made to manage Ponce's pitch count appropriately. Manager Kim said, “We need to start managing that count now. The bullpen has also had enough rest. If the games keep coming, I have no choice but to use my winning pitchers, so in that sense, the rain yesterday was quite beneficial. The game should flow without pitchers facing injuries. From that perspective, the rain was good for both the opposing team and us. If Ponce pitches between the 5th and 6th innings today, the rest of our bullpen will wait to ensure a good game.”
Manager Kim views it as crucial for Hanwha's batters to tackle LG's starting pitcher Im Chan-kyu. He said, “We have struggled to hit that nice pitcher over there, so we really need to hit well today. Ponce needs to step up, and we need to deliver a performance that meets the expectations of our fans.”
Im Chan-kyu has recorded 2 wins with no losses and an earned run average of 0.56 (16 innings, 1 earned run) in 2 games against Hanwha this year. He also achieved a complete game shutout. His season stats are impressive, with 8 wins, 2 losses, and an earned run average of 2.80.
Meanwhile, the next start for Hwang Jun-seo, whose outing has been postponed, remains flexible. There is a possibility he could pitch as a reliever. Manager Kim said, “I’m considering it. If we play tomorrow, Dong-joo will pitch, and since he hasn’t pitched in a while, I’m thinking of possibly following up with him, and now that Dong-uk has also had some rest, the results today will likely affect the situation.”
He added, “If he gets pushed back, he’ll be pitching after 10 days, so just taking a long rest doesn’t guarantee he’ll have the feel or be in good shape. I think I’ll need to discuss it with the pitching coach.”
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